Flush tank and mechanism



March 11, 1941. 1 55537 1 2,234,567

FLUSH TANK AND MECHANISM Filed June 20, 1938 INVENTOR flay/r 1/5559):

TORNEY Patented Mar. 11, 1941 UNITED STATES FLUSH TANK AND MECHANISMGreat Neck, N. Y.

Application June 20, 1938, Serial No. 214,639

2 Claims.

This invention relates to a flush tank and the mechanism to cause properfilling of the. tank, and then the immediate discharge of the water fromthe tank to flush a toilet bowl.

In the usual form of flush tank, known in the trade as a low-down tank,meaning that the tank is only a short distance above the bowl, it is nowcommon practice to use a mechanism which consists essentially of aninlet valve controlled by a float. The main water supply is piped to thetank, and the volume mechanism is attached to thissupply within thetank. When the tank is empty, the float falls downward, which movement,through a set of levers, opens the inlet valve for admission of water tothe tank. As the tank fills, the float moves upward, gradually closingthe valve to an entirely shut position at a pre-determined level of thewater in the tank. When the tank is full, a trip mechanism. lifts. arubber ball from a seat in the bottom of the tank. This permits thewater to rush out of' the tank. into the bowl. This type of mechanism.is expensive to build and is not reliable at any time. The parts aregenerally crudely made and are not set in perfect alignment, which oftencauses a continuous wastage of water. One of the principal diflicultieswith this type of construction is that the rubber ball forming theclosure of the flush valve is never perfectly round, and is subject tomany irregularities, both in manufacture and use.

This type of mechanism and tank has the serious fault of being filled atall times when it is not in use, and therefore if a leak develops in thedischarge valve, the water is constantly running into the bowl. Shouldthe feeding valve Supplying the water to the tank leak, this water isbeing filled into the tank in excess of the required amount, and willcontinue to such an extent as to overflow into the bowl. This type oftank is constructed with an overflow pipe connected with the bowl forthe special purpose of preventing the filling of the tank to the top andconsequent overflow onto the floor. The present device works on exactlythe opposite principle, in that the tank is empty at all times, and isonly filled at the time it is used. Any leakage of the supply valve inthe present device becomes stored in the tank, and will not bedischarged into the bowl until such time as the accumulated water in thetank has reached a full level ready to operate the siphoning discharge.For all practical purposes, the present device therefore wastes nowater, even though leakages occur. Obviously, the present device is ofsuch a construction as to be used with. any type bowl, as its operationis entirely independent of the bowl.

This invention eliminates all of this delicate mechanism as well as theaccurate alignment required to produce satisfactory results. It is thepurpose of this invention to provide a very simple flush mechanism whichis positive in action and with practically no moving parts to get out oforder. Furthermore, such; moving parts as are necessary are all of sucha nature as to be substantially constructed and to require no attentionwhatsoever after the. device has been put in operation.

The device likewise may be used in any form of tank arrangement, whetherit be. of the lowdown type, or the high type of tank. Another feature ofthe invention is that it covers the usual field, of household tankequipment, especially where the pressure and volume of water is notsufiioient to use the automatic flush valve which is practicable Wherelarge piping and high pressures are available.

In order to more clearly disclose the invention, reference is made tothe following drawing, in which:

Figure l is a perspective View showing the mechanism installed in a tankand attached to a toilet bowl.

Figure 2 is a sectional elevation showing the siphoning and mechanismfor discharging the water from the tank once it has been filled.

Similar reference numerals refer to similar parts throughout thedrawing.

Referring to the drawing, I is a toilet bowl which it is desired toflush. 2 is a tank set above the bowl. 3 is a connection from the bottomof the tank to the bowl. 4 is a supply pipe running from the main watersupply and connecting into the bottom of the tank. 5 is a shutoff valveinterposed in the line 4 and preferably mounted just below the tank. 6is an automatic volume control valve which is connected to the shut-offvalve 5 by pipe I. 8 is a discharge pipe connection connected to theautomatic volume control valve 6. The parts 6, I, and 8 are preferablyplaced within the tank. The valve 6 is controlled by a trip handle 9which is mounted exteriorly of the tank. I is a U-shaped pipe ofrelatively 1arge diameter which has one short leg I! and a longer leg12. The part i0 is mounted in an inverted, manner within the tank. Theleg i2 is connected to a fitting l3 mounted in the bottom of the tank,and extending therethrough, and into which the part 3 is fitted. The legH terminates in a fitting M which fastens thereon.

The fitting I4 is shaped so as to have a central opening l5 about whichis a wall l6 which has a seat [1 formed at its upper inner edge. Mountedto co-act with this seat I! is a tapered plug l8 which is preferablyhinged to the wall I6 by a hinge pin I9.

The preferred embodiment and arrangement of these parts is shown inFigure 2. It will be noted that the U-shaped pipe l0 forms a siphon tubewith the end of the leg ll near the bottom of the tank; the other leg 12being permanently attached to the flush pipe 3 connecting to the toiletbowl.

The valve 6 may be any form of commercial automatic valve which isdesigned to pass a given amount of water for one operation of the handle9. This valve is set to deliver a predetermined amount of water whichwill fill the tank to the proper level to produce the required flushing.This application does not apply to any improvement in the automaticvolume control valve, this being a standard article which may bepurchased complete.

In operation, it being desired to flush the toilet bowl, the handle 9 isoperated, whereupon a predetermined amount of water enters the tank,filling it to a given level, whereupon the valve shuts off the supply ofwater. As soon as the water has reached the proper level for flushing,the hydrostatic pressure due to the actual water head, operates to liftthe tapered plug l8, whereupon a quick siphoning action begins, due tothe filling of the leg H and leg I2 of the U-shaped pipe ID. Thissiphoning continues rapidly on account of the large bore of the tubeIll, until the tank is empty, whereupon the plug [8 drops back againstthe seat [1, closing the siphon tube. The tank then stands empty, and isnot refilled again until the handle is operated.

The purpose of the plug l8 is to prevent the beginning of the siphoningaction until the water in the tank has reached its pre-determined level.If this valve were not used, the siphoning action would beginimmediately, and the device would not deliver a flushing action.

The cycle just described may be repeated over and over again and in noinstance is there any mechanism to become jammed or misaligned.

The plug I8 does not have to form a perfect seat with the wall IE, butmerely acts to delay the siphoning action to the time when thehydrostatic pressure has reached the pre-determined requirement. Forthis reason it is desirable to have the plug l8 of a definite weight,the best adapted to the size of the tank.

The device aside from its simple mechanism also has the desirablefeature of leaving the tank empty at all times. This is important inpreventing leakage, and also avoids to a large extent corrosion of themetal parts when standing in water.

It is understood that the details described represent merely thepreferred embodiment of the invention, and that a number of variationsmay be made in the details without departing from the principles andscope of the invention. For instance, the plug I8 which is showntapered, may be a flat plate which would operate just as satisfactorily.

Having described'the invention, what is claimed as new and is desired tobe secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In an automatic flushing toilet, a toilet bowl, a tank connected tothe bowl by means of a U- shaped siphon tube set within the tank, andadapted to draw off the water in the tank with a flushing action, theopen end of the said siphon tube having a gravity operated releasevalve; and manually controlled automatic means for supplying apre-determined amount of water to the tank, the amount of water suppliedto the tank being controlled independently of the water in the tank.

2. In an automatic flushing system, a tank which is normally empty,means for supplying a pre-determined amount of water to the tank, asiphoning device set within the tank and adapted to draw off the waterin the tank with a flushing action; the means for supplying the waterand the siphoning device being independent of each other.

FRANK LIEBERT.

